Retiring Cherry Hill East Soccer coach Karl Moehlmann had a 14-7-4 record in his final season and won the South Jersey Coaches Cup Tournament.

It was a bittersweet end for Karl Moehlmann, who is retiring both from teaching and coaching after spending 24 years as the head coach of the Cherry Hill East High School boys' soccer team.

On the one hand, Moehlmann was disappointed that his team could not get past Absegami in the South Jersey Group 4 semifinal, losing a 2-1 outcome in overtime last Thursday.

But on the other hand, the Cougars enjoyed one of their best seasons in recent memory, finishing with a 14-7-4 record concluded with an 8-2 finish over the last 10 games. Part of that run included the school's first outright championship in the South Jersey Coaches Cup Tournament.

"(After losing to Absegami) the feeling was one of disappointment," Moehlmann said. "But overall, I was pretty proud of what we were able to accomplish with team. I have no regrets, basically - just pride in the accomplishments."

The coach's last East team was noted for two late runs at the end of the season.

They began play in the Coaches Tournament as a No. 14 seed and yet won the title. They began the state tournament as a No. 13 seed and yet won two games, and moved on until being taken out by the No. 1 seed in Absegami.

"This team came so far with a different approach and a defensive intensity," Moehlmann said. "(Late in the year) it kind of clicked for us and that's when we went on that run, and played in a way that we thought was good for us and we could win games."

Becuase of that late surge, Moehlmann now says he can depart as a happy coach.

"There's more of a sense of satisfaction than sadness," he said. "I got so e-mails from former players and there was a lot of pride. We had a lot of fans coming out, so it was something special to see. We were happy we were able to give something back to the school."

Moehlmann ends his soccer coaching career with a record of 272-139-43. He will return to coaching in the spring when he will lead the East boys' volleyball team through one final season. He has more than 300 wins in that sport.

? Coaches vs. Cancer: Moorestown High School girls' coach Bill Mullvihill reports that the South Jersey Soccer Coaches Association will be donating $10,000 to the American Cancer Society after a number of local high school teams took part in a series of fundraisers throughout the season.

? Official training: While all the attention has been focused on the boys' and girls' varsity tournaments, a recent JV tournament played a role in helping to develop some of the field officials who will be working at the varsity level in the coming years.

According South Jersey Soccer Officials Association Vice President Allen Stout, the tournament gives young officials some previously missing hands-on experience about how to call a game.

Before the inception of the tournament, officials were subject to classroom training, in-house training, refresher tests, and assessment of referees before they could advance to the varsity level. Now, with the help of this tournament, young officials can get out on the field in game situation and are provided with immediate feedback and recommendations for improvement during half time and at the end of each match.

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Soccer notes: Moehlmann has mixed feeling on his final season

It was a bittersweet end for Karl Moehlmann, who is retiring both from teaching and coaching after spending 24 years as the head coach of the Cherry Hill East High School boys' soccer team.